With the school year coming to a close many students will be looking for part or full-time summer employment. In some cases students will be employed in landscaping, lawn mowing, vegetable harvesting, sod farms, or other related businesses. As an employer it is your responsibility to understand the laws and regulations pertaining to the employment of minors. The Ohio Revised Code, Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Secretary of Labor all have rules and regulations in place for the protection of minors. The next few paragraphs will provide you with an overview of the regulations and references for additional information.
Who is Covered?
The employment of minors under age 16 is subject to federal requirements set by the Fair Labor Standards Act and the agriculture requirements are less than for many other industries. In 1967, the U.S. Secretary of Labor determined that certain jobs in agriculture are hazardous to children less than 16 years of age. However, like many other federal regulations, there are exemptions. These include the employment of children less than 16 years of age when employed on farms owned or operated by their parents or guardians and those who have completed an approved tractor and machinery certification course.
In addition to federal hazardous occupation regulations, there are also state regulations. For most Ohio laws, a person under the age of 18 is considered a minor and the Ohio Revised Code prohibits minors from working in certain hazardous jobs related to agriculture. The Ohio list of hazardous occupations is the same as the federal list, but the Ohio code sections and related regulations say the Ohio hazardous occupation list applies to those under 16 years of age .
Hazardous Occupations
The U.S. Secretary of Labor has declared several jobs as hazardous to minors less than 16 years of age. Because of space limitations, not all of the prohibited occupations are listed here. However, those most applicable to those involved in the types of businesses described earlier are listed below:
• Operating a tractor of more than 20 PTO horsepower, or connecting or disconnecting implements from such a tractor.
• Operating a fork lift, earth moving equipment, or power-driven circular, band or chain saw.
• Working on a ladder at a height of more than 20 feet.
• Handling or applying pesticides with the words or symbols “Danger”, “Poison”, “Skull and Crossbones”, or “Warning” on the label.
When Can Minors Work?
Under the federal regulations, minors under 16 years of age may not be employed during school hours unless employed by their parent or guardian. Unless provided a special exemption, minors are subject to the following restrictions:
• No person under 16 years of age is to be employed:
• During school hours
• Before 7:00am or after 9:00pm from June 1 to September 1 or during any school holiday of five school days or more duration, or after 7:00pm at any other time.
• For more than three hours a day in any school day.
• For more than 18 hours in any week while school is in session.
• For more than eight hours in any day which is not a school day.
• For more than 40 hours in any week that school is not is session.
• No person under 16 years of age is to be employed more than 40 hours in any one week nor during school hours unless the employment is incidental to a state approved program.
• No minor is to be employed more than five consecutive hours without allowing the minor a rest period of at least thirty minutes.
What Records Should I Keep?
The Federal Regulations require employers of minors under 16 years of age to maintain and preserve records with the following information about each minor employee:
• Name in full.
• Place where the minor lives while employed.
• Date of birth.
• Proof of needed parental or guardian signatures.
Keep in mind that minors employed by a parent or guardian are exempt from these record keeping requirements.
The Ohio Revised Code exempts agricultural employers from record keeping provisions related to minors. However, the Ohio Revised Code requires an agreement as to wages for work to be performed be made between the employer and a minor before employment begins. For the protection of the employer, this agreement should be in writing and signed by both parties.
The state agency responsible for enforcement of the Ohio Code as it relates to prohibited jobs for minors is the Division of Minimum Wage, Prevailing Wage and Minors, Department of Industrial Relations. You may contact them at 614-644-2239. The U.S. Department of Labor web site ( www.dol.gov ) also contains information of interest to employers.
If you are interested in safety training information for your employees, you may want to access the Agricultural Tailgate Training Safety fact sheets developed by Ohio State University Extension’s Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering Department. More than 80 topics are available, including tractor operation, using skid loaders, chain saw safety, and heat stress. These fact sheets are available at http://ohioline.osu.edu/atts/ or by contacting your local office of Ohio State University Extension.
Hopefully this information will help you fulfill your responsibility as an employer to understand and follow the rules to keep your business a safe place to work. If you have specific questions related to minor labor laws and regulations, please contact the Ohio Department of Industrial Relations.
(This article was written from materials contained in Ohio State University Extension Bulletin 833, Ohio Farm Labor Handbook, written by Dr. Bernie Erven and Russell Coltman, The Ohio State University. Copies of the Ohio Farm Labor Handbook are available for purchase through your local county office of Ohio State University Extension).